Michaeledward...

[bydand]

Just a quick question you two. I know your preferred method is fly, but do you use any crankbaits at all? I spotted the lure as well and thought I would ask. I use both, but actually suck wind as a flyfisheman because I just haven't put in the practice time.

 

[michaeledward]

Scott, I think I still have a spinning rod around here somewhere. And there may be a Zebco 202 kit from when the girls used to pretend to like to fish. But, except for that Boat Trip earlier this month, I haven't fished with anything but a fly in probably eight years.

I have nothing against bait fishing or hardware fishing, but the challenge of fly fishing is just a blast for me.

This past week, we hit a section of the Upper Connecticut that is open to all types of fishing. It is not a section of the river I have fished before. Dave and I spent four hours in this stretch, and did not hook up a single fish between us. We both had some strikes, and I saw some fish following my fly, but zero luck. This kicker is, some guys came down to the river with their spinning gear, and caught dinner, and released a few back into the river, while we struggled with our streamers, drys and nymphs.

It was amusing, and a bit ironic, because 15 years ago, Dave and I were the hardware guys, showing up and catching fish under the noses of the fly fishermen on the Winooski river in Vermont.


And, as for practice with a fly ... I really think you don't need it too much. What you really need is to learn how to drift a nymph down the river. Presenting a size 18 blue winged olive to a feeding rainbow across some tricky currents, of course, does require practice ... but you'll catch far more fish, and have more fun, putting on a size 12 beadhead pheasant tail and presenting in with a Quarter Down and Across technique -- flip the fly directly toward the opposite bank, and let the current pull the fly downstream ... when the 'swing' stops, let it sit in the current for a few seconds ... repeat until you limit out.

 

[bydand]

I'll have to give that a solid try this Spring. The blasted State of Maine closes rivers and streams so early to fishing I have to wait until the thaw next Spring to get my feet wet.

 

[Makalakumu]

That is a jointed rapala in its mouth?

I used to use those for bass all the time. Back in my hardware days, I once caught a trout on a rapala. It was in one of the northern Vermont rivers .... the Lamoille, maybe. I really didn't expect to catch anything where I was .... but the river was on the side of the road, so I stopped. Usually, when fishing for trout with spinning gear, I was a Rooster Tail guy.

My fishing buddie used to get so mad at me, because I could put my rooster tail on a dime, across 45 feet of river. He hated my accuracy.

That is a jointed rapala. I'll throw it out and vary the retrieve from creeping in across the surface to just swimming it at a slow rate. In certain situations, they are the choice par excellance for trout. On dark moonless nights with clouds and a slight mist, you can even get away with a size 13. Those are the best days to fish at night because there is almost no light and the real big ones get hungry. My biggest was a 31 in monster. I took it five years ago on the last weekend in september...which is closing day for that particular section of the river.

As far as flycasting goes, on some nights that will far out produce spinning tackle. Large black mouse patterns, poppers and divers work. The same stuff a guy would use for pike. And on really dark nights, you need to fish flies that are really huge!

Check this out...

That bad boy is 8 inches long!

 

[Makalakumu]

Just a quick question you two. I know your preferred method is fly, but do you use any crankbaits at all? I spotted the lure as well and thought I would ask. I use both, but actually suck wind as a flyfisheman because I just haven't put in the practice time.

I fish to the conditions. When spinning out produces fly tackle, then I'll go spinning. When fly tackle has the best presentation, I'll go with that. The thing about the Brule and Northern WI is that water temps can take a dive really quick and you couldn't get a trout to crack its jaw for hardware if your life depended on it. However, if you can drift a fly and wade without spooking fish, you will SLAM them. During the peak steelhead run up here, the only good fishing is flyfishing.

As far as crankbaits are concerned, I don't use them for trout. Even a #5 dives too deep and too fast. They don't work as well in current. When I come to a deep and slow pool, I'll fish one of these...

These are called flatfish and actually, these colors are about right. Fish them slow and through the center of the pool. If you hit a twig or a rock, the shape of them lets them float out of the snag really easily. That's usually when you get hits.

 

[Makalakumu]

And there may be a Zebco 202 kit from when the girls used to pretend to like to fish.

My little ones still beg me to go fishing. They were sad when daddy said he was going to by himself. So I promised to take them next weekend.

Twist my arm...

I have nothing against bait fishing or hardware fishing, but the challenge of fly fishing is just a blast for me.

And then there's the mystique. One of the things I liked about New Zealand was that many of the best trout streams were flyfishing only. This tended to keep the vulgar elements of society out.

Unfortunately, I only had my 5 weight travel rod with me...which really sucks because the average fish pushes 2-3 kg. And that is doubly unfortunate because I couldn't even get a rise on a fly so I never got to test my noodly rod.

I did see a few though.

This past week, we hit a section of the Upper Connecticut that is open to all types of fishing. It is not a section of the river I have fished before. Dave and I spent four hours in this stretch, and did not hook up a single fish between us. We both had some strikes, and I saw some fish following my fly, but zero luck. This kicker is, some guys came down to the river with their spinning gear, and caught dinner, and released a few back into the river, while we struggled with our streamers, drys and nymphs.

It was amusing, and a bit ironic, because 15 years ago, Dave and I were the hardware guys, showing up and catching fish under the noses of the fly fishermen on the Winooski river in Vermont.

The opposite thing happens around these parts. Sometimes the only way you can catch fish is with a fly. There is nothing more subtle when the fish are spooky and the water temps are cold.

And, as for practice with a fly ... I really think you don't need it too much. What you really need is to learn how to drift a nymph down the river. Presenting a size 18 blue winged olive to a feeding rainbow across some tricky currents, of course, does require practice ... but you'll catch far more fish, and have more fun, putting on a size 12 beadhead pheasant tail and presenting in with a Quarter Down and Across technique -- flip the fly directly toward the opposite bank, and let the current pull the fly downstream ... when the 'swing' stops, let it sit in the current for a few seconds ... repeat until you limit out.

Mike, how good of a nymph presentation do you have? Some of the best fisherman up here are nymphers and they can get that nymph down too the deepest holes in the river. They always seem to pull up the biggest pigs too.

 

[michaeledward]

Mike, how good of a nymph presentation do you have? Some of the best fisherman up here are nymphers and they can get that nymph down too the deepest holes in the river. They always seem to pull up the biggest pigs too.

Actually, I suck at nymphing. I so much prefer to use a dry. But, nymphing produces fish. Where we were, in the morning, we have to be subsurface. By 10:00 AM, if it is warm enough, you can switch over to a dry. Most of the time in our New England Free Stone water, the fish are not overly selective. We are primarily a caddis fly area, but there are always a few mayflies around. If you are at the right size, it often doesn't matter which pattern you are using; color might affect the number of strikes, but size is most important.

My fishing buddie far out classes me when it comes to presenting a nymph. This past week, he caught the best fish of the trip with an un-weighted San Juan worm, just sort of flipped in the still water in front of a structure, not a foot from shore. The fly was just sitting there, sinking very, very slowly, and out comes a 16"+ Brook trout.

My best fish in that river was on a bead head pheasant tail, with an extra split shot added right at the eye of the hook, to get it down. A dead drift through the pool resulted in am 18" brook trout. (Not this trip, last fall).

 

[Makalakumu]

Actually, I suck at nymphing. I so much prefer to use a dry. But, nymphing produces fish. Where we were, in the morning, we have to be subsurface. By 10:00 AM, if it is warm enough, you can switch over to a dry. Most of the time in our New England Free Stone water, the fish are not overly selective. We are primarily a caddis fly area, but there are always a few mayflies around. If you are at the right size, it often doesn't matter which pattern you are using; color might affect the number of strikes, but size is most important.

My fishing buddie far out classes me when it comes to presenting a nymph. This past week, he caught the best fish of the trip with an un-weighted San Juan worm, just sort of flipped in the still water in front of a structure, not a foot from shore. The fly was just sitting there, sinking very, very slowly, and out comes a 16"+ Brook trout.

My best fish in that river was on a bead head pheasant tail, with an extra split shot added right at the eye of the hook, to get it down. A dead drift through the pool resulted in am 18" brook trout. (Not this trip, last fall).

Shoot, cuz I was going to try and pick your brain. It seems that both of us are in similar positions...

Those are big Brook Trout btw. I've never caught one over 12 inches.

 

[michaeledward]

Shoot, cuz I was going to try and pick your brain. It seems that both of us are in similar positions...

Those are big Brook Trout btw. I've never caught one over 12 inches.

Yes, they are big. All of them are hatchery raised fish. A native brook trout in this area, would be a trophy if it was 9". We have very few, if any, naturally sustaining populations left in New Hampshire. There are a handful of rivers that Fish & Game does not stock at all, in hopes of keeping such, but I don't know how it has been working.

I caught one brookie on this last trip, that looked to have been spawned in the river .... all the fins were full and clear (hatchery raised fish often are beat up in the raceways, and fins clipped for future surveys) ... colors were brighter than usual, and no other indication of living in cement. That fish was about 7" to 8". It sure was pretty.

For 'big native brookies', you have to go North ... far North.

 

[bydand]

That is one thing I'll give this area, there are some spots where you can pull a 16"-24" non-clipped and bright brookie. The largest Brookie I ever caught was caught in a stream I could almost jump across and only 16-18" deep in most places. Right at the mouth laying under a giant log in a hole that was a couple of feet deep, it was the one place I actually could reach with a flyrod and not look totally inept. Mouth of "Halfway brook" entering into the "Little Madawaska River." Other good big brookie waters here if you ever travel, would be the Fish River system throughfares and lakes. I wish I could get out again this fall. I miss fall fishing.

 

[Makalakumu]

Check out this one. I got it last night!